Pakistan on Thursday welcomed the announcement of the resumption of the stalled talks between the US and the Taliban.
The US State Department on Wednesday said America will shortly resume talks with the Taliban.
The US negotiator on Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, will head to Qatar to "rejoin talks with the Taliban to discuss steps that could lead to intra-Afghan negotiations and a peaceful settlement of the war, specifically a reduction in violence that leads to a ceasefire," it said in a statement in Washington.
The development came three months after President Donald Trump abruptly called off peace talks with the insurgents in September after a US soldier was killed in a suicide attack in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul.
Pakistan Foreign Office on Thursday said, "We hope that it (the talks) will lead to intra-Afghan negotiations and ultimately to a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. Pakistan encourages all parties to the conflict to engage constructively as a shared responsibility."
It .

Pak welcomes resumption of stalled talks between US and Taliban

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Italian football clubs on Thursday slammed a renowned sports daily's front page as "unacceptable" and "terrible" after it used "Black Friday" in a headline in reference to Romelu Lukaku and Roma defender Chris Smalling.
Smalling and Lukaku, former Manchester United teammates, face off at the San Siro on Friday as Inter Milan look to maintain top spot in Serie A beating Champions League-chasing Roma, prompting the Rome-based Corriere dello Sport to publish the controversial headline.
The article praised the two players for taking "strong positions against racism and are the symbols of the two clubs", but Roma tweeted "not a single soul" would think the headline a good idea.
The club's chief strategy officer Paul Rogers told AFP the choice of headline was "terrible" although the article itself was "positive".
Racism is a recurrent problem in Italian football, with several black Serie A players having suffered racial abuse by supporters in the first months of the season.
"The intention ..

Italian sports daily slammed for Lukaku 'Black Friday' headline

Vowing to curb rampant corruption and ease the lives of the people of Pakistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday launched the 'Digital Pakistan' initiative after his government roped in a senior Google executive to head the ambitious programme.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony here, he said the campaign will "unleash the youth's potential" in the country.
He said that the world has been progressing while Pakistan has largely lagged behind.
"Digital Pakistan will be the government's utmost priority. It will unleash the potential of the youth. Pakistan has the second biggest population of youth and it can be turned into strength through digital work," Khan was quoted as saying by Geo News.
Women can also contribute to the sector as well and gain jobs, he said.
"E-governance is necessary to curb corruption, which is rampant across the country at all levels, and this initiative will ease the lives of the citizens," the Express Tribune quoted him as saying.
Underlining that the ...

Imran Khan launches 'Digital Pakistan' initiative

The Maldives foreign minister says his country needs to restructure its massive debt to China, which he says has put the Indian ocean archipelago in a difficult situation.
Abdulla Shahid said the country's Chinese debt currently totals about $1.4 billion.
He told reporters in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Thursday that he is currently consulting with the Chinese government on this.
The Chinese loans have been given for housing projects, a bridge connecting the airport island with the capital island, Male, and for some state-owned enterprises.
Shahid said the loans were "unreasonable borrowings" by the previous government.
Since the government of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih came into power last year, Maldives has begun a shift away from China toward traditional ally India.

Maldives wants to restructure debt to China

Nepalese Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, who underwent an appendicitis surgery last month, was discharged from the hospital on Thursday.
"PM Oli has been discharged from the hospital, as his health has been improving steadily," his press aide Surya Thapa told reporters.
The 67-year-old prime minister returned to his official residence at Baluwatar in the afternoon.
He underwent an appendicitis surgery last month amid growing concerns over his worsening renal health. He spent about 10 days in the hospital.
President Bidya Devi Bhandari visited him at the hospital on Thursday.
Oli underwent kidney transplant in India in 2007 after both his kidneys failed to function. He has been visiting hospitals abroad for health check-up ever since.

Nepalese PM Oli discharged from hospital

Indians continued their good run at the table tennis events  in the 13th South Asian Games with four of them cruising into the semifinals to assure themselves of medals, here on Thursday.
In the men's quarterfinals, top-seed Harmeet Desai defeated Fahad Khwaja of Pakistan 11-8, 11-7, 11-5, 11-6. Second seed Anthony Amalraj also made his way to the semifinal defeating Imesha Udeya of Sri Lanka 5-11, 11-9, 11-6, 12-10, 11-9.
Harmeet  and Amalraj will now clash with Nepal's Purushottam B and Santoo Shrestha respectively.
In the women's singles, Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee marched into the semifinals without any problems.
Ayhika defeated Fatima Dheema of Maldives 11-6, 11-3, 11-6, 11-3 while Sutirtha downed Yasin Sanam of Pakistan 11-2, 11-2, 11-1, 11-4.
Ayhika and Sutirtha will now lock horns with Erandi Dilushika and Ishara Madurangi of Sri Lanka respectively.

Indian paddlers assure four medals at South Asian Games

The World Muslim Communities Council (WMCC) will host the inaugural edition of the International Youth Forum in Abu Dhabi during which it will launch a major institutional initiative to enhance the role of Muslim youths in their societies as well as in international forums.
The WMCC is an expert house for the rationalisation of the working organisations and associations in Muslim societies.
More than 250 delegates from non-Muslim countries will also congregate at the two-day conference, themed 'Building Future Leaders: Commitment, Integrity and Innovation', which will start on December 7.
The conference is aimed at helping Muslim communities around the world to deal with the multi-faceted challenges arising from national integration, preservation of the faith and social development.
Prominent policy makers, religious leaders and young achievers from around the world will share their insights on the challenges and opportunities of the Muslim communities.
The delegates, including ...

World Muslim council to launch initiatives to enhance role of youths in societies, int'l forums

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday announced the House is drafting articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump.
Earlier in the day, Pelosi said she would deliver an unusual public statement on the status of the House impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.
On Wednesday, Pelosi met behind closed doors with her Democratic caucus, asking, "re you ready?" The answer was a resounding yes, according to those in the room.
Democrats are charging toward a Christmastime vote on removing the 45th president, a situation Pelosi hoped to avoid but which now seems inevitable. She is to make a public statement on impeachment at 9 a.m.
Three leading legal scholars testified Wednesday to the House Judiciary Committee that Trump's attempts to have Ukraine investigate Democratic rivals are grounds for impeachment, bolstering the Democrats' case.
A fourth expert called by Republicans warned against rushing the process, arguing this would be the shortest of impeachment proceedings, .

Pelosi OKs drafting of impeachment articles against Trump

A deadly attack on the Burundi army last month near the Rwanda border has sent tensions soaring between the neighbours, with Bujumbura directly accusing Kigali of armed aggression.
The assault took place late at night on November 16 on Twinyoni Hill, around 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of Bujumbura, in thick forest some five kilometres from the Rwandan border.
The attackers were equipped with bulletproof vests and night-vision goggles, according to survivors.  An initial government tally put the death toll at eight, however a top military official -- his account backed up by relatives and local media -- said 19 were killed and 20 injured.
It was the deadliest attack by an armed group on Burundian soil since 2015, when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced he would seek a third term in office, plunging the country into a deadly political crisis and economic recession.
Initially Bujumbura blamed the attack on "a group armed with rifles who came from Rwanda", however the government ...

Armed attack in Burundi aggravates tensions with Rwanda

Led by strong performances by wushu players and swimmers, India breached the 100-medal mark by winning a whopping 50 medals on the fourth day of competitions to consolidate its top position in the South Asian Games here on Thursday.
India secured its best medal haul on a single day so far in the Games to lead the medal tally with 58 gold, 41 silver and 19 bronze for a total of 118 medals to leave hosts Nepal far behind in the second spot.
Nepal has 36 gold, 26 silver and 34 bronze for a total of 96 medals, followed by Sri Lanka (16 gold, 31 silver, 52 bronze) at third position.
India added 26 gold, 18 silver and 6 bronze on Thursday.
The bulk of India's medals came from swimming, wushu, weightlifting and athletics. India's gold rush was triggered by wushu with as many as seven yellow metals coming from it.
Suraj Singh fetched the first wushu gold of the day in men's gunshu all-round event before Y Sanathoi Devi (women's sansou 52kg), Punam (women's 75kg), Deepika (women's 70kg), ...

India wins whopping 50 medals, breaches 100-mark to consolidate top spot in South Asian Games

Russians posted plane emojis and angry comments on Thursday as journalists and TV stars interviewing Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev failed to raise explosive claims over his wife's use of a private jet.
Medvedev's annual televised question-and-answer session lasted two hours and featured a panel of journalists, a well-known comedian and a young Instagram star.
Yet none mentioned a scandalous report with millions of views on YouTube about the premier's wife Svetlana Medvedeva's alleged use of a $50 million jet for numerous private trips including pilgrimages.
A report making the claim by opposition leader Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation came out Wednesday and the video version has been viewed more than 2 million times on YouTube.
The report alleges Medvedeva used a plane owned by a Belize offshore firm to make at least 11 trips in a personal capacity including a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, despite not having the right to a personal plane.
Speculation ahead of Medvedev's ...

Off the radar: Russian TV ignores PM wife's plane scandal

Most of the Indians hospitalised or reported missing after the LPG tanker blast at a ceramics factory in Sudan belonged to Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and authorities are trying to ascertain the identifies of the victims, officials said on Thursday.
The Indian Embassy has issued a detailed list of the Indians who were reported missing, hospitalised, or survived the blast at the Seela Ceramic Factory in Bahri area in Khartoum on Tuesday that killed at least 23 people.
Eighteen Indians were among the dead. No information is currently available on their identities.
"The bodies have burnt beyond recognition. We are trying to establish their identity," an Indian official told PTI over phone.
The official said one more person died on Thursday and identified the victim as Niraj Kumar Singh from Bihar.
More than 130 people were injured in the blast.
Seven Indians have been hospitalised, with four in critical condition and 16 were still missing.
Out of those reported missing ...

Most victims of Sudan fire tragedy belonged to Tamil Nadu, UP, Bihar: Indian Embassy

Portugal won't exclude Chinese companies from supplying technology for the country's next-generation 5G wireless network, senior Portuguese officials told US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday.
Portugal is the latest European Union country to resist US efforts to persuade allies they should shun Huawei's bids to provide the hardware that operators will use for the new ultra-fast 5G networks.
The Chinese government "won't hesitate" to use Huawei as a back door to sensitive data, Pompeo warned at a news conference with Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva.
He said each country has to make its own decision about such issues.
"But we have tried for these past couple of years to make clear to our friends all around the world of the attendant risks," Pompeo said.
Santos Silva said bids from 5G operators will be assessed in the light of strict Portuguese and EU regulations. Market-leading wireless carrier Altice Portugal partnered last year with Huawei to develop 5G ...

Portugal resists US appeal to bar Huawei from 5G network

Son Heung-min said he and his Tottenham Hotspur team-mates would have to work hard because he did not like experiencing the pain he felt following Wednesday's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United.
The 27-year-old Korean star gets his chance to bounce back on Saturday at home to Burnley.
However, last season's Champions League finalists are nine points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea -- who occupy the final Champions League spot -- and can ill afford any more slip-ups.
United's victory was the first loss for Son and Spurs since Jose Mourinho replaced Mauricio Pochettino, who was sacked a fortnight ago due to Spurs lacklustre campaign so far.
"I hate to lose any single game," said Son after the match.
"It doesn't matter against who or which team. It doesn't feel nice. I feel hurt and pain.
"This kind of game against big teams like United or City you want to win.
"I feel more pain because we know we can do better, so I know I can do better. That's why I feel more pain than any other ...

Spurs star Son feels the pain after United defeat

The vaccine alliance GAVI announced it would invest USD 178 million to create a global stockpile of about 500,000 Ebola vaccines, a move health officials say could help prevent future outbreaks from spiralling out of control.
GAVI is a public-private partnership that includes the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank, among others.
The funding announcement was made Thursday after a meeting of GAVI's board in New Delhi.
Since the latest outbreak in Congo was identified last August, health officials have immunised more than 255, 000 people with a recently licensed vaccine made by Merck.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, chair of Gavi's board, called the creation of the Ebola vaccine stockpile a "historic milestone in humanity's fight against this horrific disease".

Vaccine group announces creation of Ebola vaccine stockpile

Jurgen Klinsmann is making the Hertha Berlin players suffer in training to get them fit for the Bundesliga relegation battle, forward Davie Selke says.
Hertha forward Selke told German magazine Kicker that Hertha are feeling "the fire in every training session. We are running further than we used to" ahead of their league clash at Eintracht Frankfurt on Friday.
"We are currently suffering, but we like to suffer," added Selke, who had a second-half equaliser against Dortmund ruled out for offside by VAR.
Klinsmann, who has coached Germany and the USA at World Cup finals, took charge a week ago with Hertha fighting to avoid a third relegation from the German top division in a decade.
Hertha currently sit in 16th -- the relegation playoff spot -- and just three points from the automatic drop zone.
Klinsmann began last Saturday with a 2-1 home defeat to Borussia Dortmund, who played the second half a man down after 2014 World Cup winner Mats Hummels was sent off for two first-half yellow .

Hertha feeling 'the fire' under Klinsmann in relegation battle

Pakistani journalists and rights activists have rallied in support of a leading newspaper in Islamabad and elsewhere, days after Islamists gathered at the newspaper, threatening staff and demanding its editor be hanged.
At Thursday's rally, activists and journalists condemned this week's besieging of English-language newspaper Dawn's office in Islamabad.
They criticised the anti-newspaper protesters who want editor Zaffar Abbas and publisher Hameed Haroon hanged for reporting that the London Bridge attacker was of "Pakistani origin".
The Islamists' threats at their rally Tuesday outside Dawn's office were condemned by international media watchdogs and Pakistani journalists who say the protesters blocked the entrance to the building that houses the newspaper and its sister TV channel, Dawn TV.
No arrests have been made so far.

Journalists rally to denounce threats to Pakistani newspaper

US e-commerce giant Amazon's entry into the live broadcasting of Premier League football was expected to be full of glitz and innovation but instead they played safe in sticking to a tried and tested formula.
Amazon are the first of the tech giants to dip their toe into the Premier League after paying ?90 million ($118 million, 106.6 million euros) for 20 games a year over three years, breaking up the duopoly of Sky and BT Sport.
But in the matches, shown on Amazon Prime, the seller's premium service available for a fee, the pundits and commentators were familiar faces and Amazon branding was far from evident.
One thing that did not appear to go down well with fans attending the matches was the kick-off time of the marquee match -- Manchester City's win against Burnley on Tuesday and Liverpool's victory against Everton on Wednesday -- started at 8:15 pm (2015 GMT) on both evenings.
A section of Crystal Palace fans at Tuesday's home match with Bournemouth expressed their feelings in no 

Amazon make low-key live Premier League debut

Public transport workers in Paris will remain on strike until Monday, unions said Thursday on the first day of a national work stoppage over pension reforms.
Nearly all the striking workers voted to remain off the job until Monday, Thierry Babec of UNSA union said, adding that the network would remain "at a virtual standstill" if the government did not abandon the reforms.
Only two the 16 Paris metro lines were operating normally during rush hour Thursday morning.
Service on the heavily used suburban rail lines crossing the city and on buses and trams were also heavily disrupted.
Anticipating the worst travel chaos in years, many employees were working from home on Thursday. Those who did venture out travelled mainly by car, bicycle, electric scooter or on foot.

Paris transport strike extended until Monday

Russia said on Thursday it was expelling a Bulgarian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move after Sofia asked a Russian diplomat to leave the country over suspicions of espionage.
The Russian foreign ministry said the Bulgarian ambassador in Moscow, Atanas Krastin, had been handed a note informing him that an employee of the mission was declared "persona non grata".
"The step is a retaliatory measure in response to a decision by the Bulgarian authorities to expel a Russian diplomat from the country in October," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
No further details were provided.
In late October, Sofia expelled a Russian diplomat after he ignored a request to leave following a probe which confirmed he had been spying in the EU member country.
The Russian ambassador was told at the time that the diplomat in question, a first secretary at the embassy in Sofia, has 24 hours to leave the country.
NATO and EU member Bulgaria was previously a Soviet satellite and is now a rare ally of Russia .

Russia expels Bulgarian diplomat in spy affair

United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz will step aside in a leadership shuffle, that will take effect in May, the company announced Thursday.
United President Scott Kirby will take over as CEO after the shareholders meeting in the spring, while Munoz moves on to become executive chairman of the board of directors for one year, the company said in a statement.
"With United in a stronger position than ever, now is the right time to begin the process of passing the baton to a new leader," Munoz said in a statement.
Kirby was recruited to United Airlines by Munoz in August 2016.

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